2007-02-19 16:48:26 · 28 answers · asked by Anonymous in Sports ➔ Baseball
Cincinnati Reds
2007-02-19 17:27:56 · answer #1 · answered by burrhead24 2 · 0⤊ 3⤋
Watch out for the Brewers. Prince Fielder, Rickie Weeks, Bill Hall, Dave Bush and Chris Capuano are some of the key younger players on this squad who are set to surprise the NL Central. Don't forget that they have Geoff Jenkins, Corey Koskie, Craig Counsell and a number of other players who will provide solid veteran leadership. Top that off with Ben Sheets and the acquisition of Jeff Suppan and you'll find that the Brewers have set the stage to make a decent run over the next few years. The Cubs, while impressive on paper, have done nothing more than throw money at a one-time chance to win a World Series. Look at the Yankees of late if you believe that it takes money to win the World Series. Sure, the Yanks look good all year long, but egos get in the way of reaching goals and eventually cost the team. I look for the same to happen to the Cubbies this year.
Oh, and by the way, I'm an Astros fan, so don't think I'm some type of Brewer fanboy.
2007-02-20 02:55:41 · answer #2 · answered by kenrayf 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The team that has to be the suprise team of the year is the Philadelphia Phillies. They may not have made the playoffs since there World Series heart breaker in 1993 but since then they have always been missing something. This year they have great pitching, (Cole Hamels-1/2 a season with 9 wins, Freddy Garcia- 17 wins last year, Brett Myers- always has an ERA around 3.00-3.50 with at least 12-15 wins, Adam Eaton-solid pitcher, Jamie Moyer- career 210+ game winner) They have tremendous hitting, (Ryan Howard- 58 HRs, 149 RBIs and .313 BA, Chase Utley-32 HRs, 102 RBIs and .300+ BA, Jimmy Rollins- 25 HRs, 85 RBIs, Pat Burrell- 29 HRs, 95 RBIs, Wes Helms- .329 BA, Rod Barahas- hits around 20 HRs), and they have a decent bullpen (Tom Gordan- around 35 SVs last year, Antonio Alfonseca- former Rolaids Relief Reward winner, and a bunch of young RPs like Eude Brito, Matt Smith, Brian Sanches, Ryan Madson, Geoff Geary (not really young), and Fabio Castro
So why wouldn't the Phillies make the playoffs
2007-02-20 08:59:47 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most people are giving the NL Central to the Cards or Cubs. I think the Brewers have a real shot this year. Kind of like the Tigers last year, the Brewers are loaded with young talent, Prince Fielder can mash, Rickie Weeks as a great stick, Cory Hart has a good combination of speed and power. Plus Estrada in as the new catcher along with Hall, Hardy, and Jenkins makes for a decent lineup. Their rotation is the best in the division (at least on paper) Ben Sheets is a true ace. Capuano is very good. Suppan is very reliable and gives a veteran presence. Bush as a good upside and is a nice fantasy baseball sleeper. Vargas as a #5 isn't too bad.
2007-02-20 00:51:56 · answer #4 · answered by brewcards 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
the Pirates who have been slowly and painfully building a team for a small market. They have Jason Bay and Freddie Sanchez and have picked up some more power with LaRoche. The other players need only improve a little and the pitching needs to remain strong (best bullpen in baseball). May not win the division but could very well make the playoffs for the first time in a long time.
2007-02-20 03:38:52 · answer #5 · answered by Tom W 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I think the Brewers are going to have their best season in a long time because of the young talent they have and the solid pitching they have (as long as Sheets stays healthy). I think KC could suprise alot of people this year. I think the suprise will be that the Cubbies are not going to make the playoffs even after they spent $1/2 billion to beef up their team.
2007-02-20 03:27:25 · answer #6 · answered by russell s 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm really surprised no one has said this yet, but I think the Cleveland Indians will shock the world in 2007. Their bullpen is much deeper than last year (despite Keith Foulke retiring), with Matt Miller, Tom Mastny, Edward Mujica, among others returnig for full seasons. The everyday line-up will be better, with Travis Hafner, Grady Sizemore, and Victor Martinez continuing to improve. Keep in mind one key: the Indians finally have proven veteran leaduership with the arrival of David Dellucci and Trot Nixon, two guys who have won the World Series and know what it takes to get there.
2007-02-20 05:03:42 · answer #7 · answered by Snoop 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Can't say the Cubs. They spent like a billion $'s so it shouldn't be a surprise if they do well. Besides, anyone knows that pitching wins pennants and the Cubbies are still lacking quality starters. I am going with Arizona Diamondbacks as the surprise team. They are in a weak division and have Cy Young winner B Webb, Randy Johnson in warm weather, and if either Livian Hernandez or Doug Davis rebounds to 05 form, the rotation should be solid. They also have a nice balance of young talent and veterans on offense.
2007-02-19 19:02:38 · answer #8 · answered by raymond g 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
I agree with the multiple Brewers claims, as well as the Reds, but let me throw a 3rd NL Central team into the mix . Thats right, I'm going to promote the Pittsburgh Pirates as a sleeper contender. They may be another year or two away, but the Pirates FINALLY seem to be turning the corner and making some smarter personnel decisions. Many people forget that the Pirates played some of the best baseball in the NL during the 2nd half of last season. And many of those games were against teams fighting for playoff spots.
They have young pitching with tons of talent. Somewhat reminiscent of the 06 Tigers. I'm not saying they will get the same results as the Tigers did last season, but they should perform better than years past. They also finally made an offseason splash by picking up a young player going into his prime rather than a castoff that they would look to deal by the trading deadline like years past (Casey, Burnitz, Randa, Lofton, Reggie Sanders, Derek Bell, etc.) This year they picked up Adam LaRoche from the Braves to play first base. While they had to give up Mike Gonzalez in the deal, they have Salomon Torres who will be given a chance to close this season, while giving Matt Capps or Josh Sharpless a chance to learn the role for the future.
Their lineup will be much better 1 through 8 than it has been in years past. A lot of their success will depend on Chris Duffy continuing to improve his on base percentage, and Jose Castillo possibly meeting the potential that us Pirates fans have heard about for years. The lineup should look like this (in my opinion)
1 - Chris Duffy - CF
2 - Jack Wilson - SS
3 - Freddy Sanchez - 3B
4 - Jason Bay - LF
5 - Adam LaRoche - 1B
6 - Xavier Nady - RF
7 - Ronny Paulino - C
8 - Jose Castillo - 2B
Every player in that lineup has the potential to hit .280 or higher. The Pirates may be another year or two away, but don't sleep on them for the 2007 season. Beat em Bucs!!
2007-02-20 01:57:33 · answer #9 · answered by Xax Haus 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Milwaukee Brewers
2007-02-19 22:10:24 · answer #10 · answered by Hondo 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋